Two seven story buildings could arise on east end of Burnside Bridge

Portland Development Commission, the city urban renewal agency, is poised to sell a long-vacant parcel near the east end of the Burnside Bridge to Beam Development and Urban Development Partners.

The developers have agreed to pay nearly $2.3 million for the 26,570-square-foot parcel at the northwest corner of Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Couch Street, part of whats known as the Burnside Bridgehead property.

Beam and Urban Development Partners plan to build two buildings in phases, with the first phase expected to be a seven-story, 100,000-square-foot mixed-use building. There would be ground-floor commercial space topped by work/live units, with apartments above those. A second phase is anticipated to be another seven-story building, with 60,000 square feet of commercial, office and apartments.

The PDC Board of Commissioners will consider authorizing the sale at their Wednesday meeting. The deal is expected to close by December.

PDC acquired the block along with nearby parcels between 1998 and 2006, to foster a multi-block mixed-use redevelopment. Past efforts to sell or develop the full property have fizzled, including a proposal by Opus Northwest.

PDC decided to split the parcels up in 2010, and allow for smaller developments.